This morning, Writer’s Almanac reminded me that, had he not died in 1992, today would be Richard Yates’ 79th birthday. Until recently, Yates was the great unsung voice of postwar American literature; for years, I was the only person I knew who’d read him, and I only did because he was the guest writer one semester when I was at Alabama.

Dick’s work is strong, though, and on the strength of that — and some advocacy from modern-day literary heavyweights like Michael Chabon, Richard Ford, and others — his collected stories were published to great acclaim (Salon review) and success in 2001. He’d like that, but not for reasons of filthy lucre. As he told Andre Dubus once, all he really wanted was readers. At least now he’s got some.

Here’s a few bits about Dick worth reading, even if you’ve never been exposed to his work.

• Stewart O’Nan’s The Lost World of Richard Yates
• This interview from the Independent was done only about three weeks before he died.
• Michael Chabon had this much to say about reading Yates in this 2001 interview.
• Finally, I wrote this essay about Dick several years ago; his birthday is a fine reason to bring it up again.

Want more? Some of his books are in print again.

• Revolutionary Road, his first novel, and one of the best you’ll ever read.
• The Easter Parade came later, but is no less strong.
• A Special Providence.
• A Good School.
• Cold Spring Harbor.
• And, finally, the aforementioned The Collected Stories of Richard Yates. Buy this; it’s the only place you can get the material originally published in “Liars in Love,” which is fine, fine stuff. Yates was a master of the short story; these are just stunning.